### https://theweeklychallenge.org/blog/perl-weekly-challenge-280/
"""

Task 2: Count Asterisks

Submitted by: [54]Mohammad Sajid Anwar
     __________________________________________________________________

   You are given a string, $str, where every two consecutive vertical bars
   are grouped into a pair.

   Write a script to return the number of asterisks, *, excluding any
   between each pair of vertical bars.

Example 1

Input: $str = "p|*e*rl|w**e|*ekly|"
Ouput: 2

The characters we are looking here are "p" and "w**e".

Example 2

Input: $str = "perl"
Ouput: 0

Example 3

Input: $str = "th|ewe|e**|k|l***ych|alleng|e"
Ouput: 5

The characters we are looking here are "th", "e**", "l***ych" and "e".
     __________________________________________________________________

   Last date to submit the solution 23:59 (UK Time) Sunday 4th August
   2024.
     __________________________________________________________________

SO WHAT DO YOU THINK ?
"""
### solution by pokgopun@gmail.com

def cntAtr(string:str):
    c = 0
    l = len(string)
    while l > 0:
        l -= 1
        if string[l] == "*":
            c += 1
        elif string[l] == "|":
            i = string[:l].rfind("|")
            if i != -1:
                l = i
    return c

import unittest

class TestCntAtr(unittest.TestCase):
    def test(self):
        for inpt, otpt in {
                "p|*e*rl|w**e|*ekly|": 2,
                "perl": 0,
                "th|ewe|e**|k|l***ych|alleng|e": 5,
                }.items():
            self.assertEqual(cntAtr(inpt),otpt)

unittest.main()